Patient Gateway

Technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace and Newton-Wellesley Hospital knows the importance of being a leader in the field of adopting the latest medical advancements. The Hospital provides the highest quality care for patients as well as access to the most advanced technology. With a focus on quality and patient safety, the Hospital and its affiliated physicians have made significant investments in equipment and resources to better meet patient needs.

One recent advancement is Partners HealthCare Patient Gateway – a secure patient Web portal that allows patients fast and convenient online access to their physician’s office and to their medical information.

Electronic Medical RecordsPatient Gateway is a component of the ambulatory electronic medical record (EMR) project, which Newton-Wellesley began implementing in 2005. The electronic medical record is a Web-based technology that creates one common, secure electronic patient record that can be accessed when patients visit Newton- Wellesley, one of our affiliated physician practices or any of the Partners’ institutions and practices.

Electronic medical records eliminate the need for paper charts and greatly improve the coordination of a patient’s care by the health care providers who are treating the patient. All of their medical information is integrated into one common record, allowing primary care and specialist physicians ready access to the most recent office visit notes, current conditions, medications and allergies, as well as laboratory, radiology and other diagnostic test results.

The use of an electronic medical record provides many benefits for patients. Having their health information easily accessible and available to all of their physicians helps with both the accuracy of diagnosis and avoids the potential duplication of costly services. Access to a complete medical record is essential at the time of diagnosis. It is important that a physician knows information such as the patient’s medications and other medical information. In many cases, this information can alter diagnosis and treatment decisions.

Benefits of Patient GatewayPatient Gateway will further enhance the benefits for our patients. Through the use of this technology, patients will now have access to:

Immunization information

Medication information

Lab reports for tests performed at Newton-Wellesley or a Partners affiliated laboratory

Radiology reports for tests performed at Newton-Wellesley or a Partners affiliated facility

Through this new portal, patients can also schedule appointments, request referrals, send messages to their care team and request prescription renewals.

Connecting Patients and Physicians“This is a patient-focused information system that allows people to have increased access to their physician and care team,” says Mary Huck, Manager of Physician Services at Newton-Wellesley Hospital Physician Organization. “We started rolling out Patient Gateway last year after the electronic medical record was deployed and currently have more than 15,000 patients using the service.”

Patients can use Patient Gateway to send questions and messages to their physician’s office through the portal, which is more secure and private than email. The message is reviewed by the office staff and directed to the best person to respond. This allows people to quickly send a message or question without having to rely on the phone.

“Many patients feel this service keeps them more connected to their physician by making communication easier,” says Mary. “Patient Gateway offers one convenient location to organize their medical information and visit history. We are currently rolling this technology out to physicians at Newton-Wellesley and now have more than 100 physicians live on Gateway.”

Patient Gateway also offers an in-depth health and disease library with information about a variety of topics to provide patients with more information. This resource is provided by Healthwise – a trusted source of health information.

“Sometimes when patients leave voice messages, it can be hard to understand the message correctly. When the message is coming directly from Patient Gateway, we know exactly who is sending it and why. We have also noticed that medication refills are more efficient using this technology. When medication names get left in voice messages, the pronunciation or spelling can be incorrect; however, by refilling through Patient Gateway, everyone involved knows the exact medication since it is located within the patient’s online record.”

Patients can also use Patient Gateway to complete pre-visit forms for their appointments and receive reminder emails for appointments and tests.

A Positive Patient Response“Our patients have had a very positive response to Patient Gateway,” adds Dr. Burns. “They feel it’s a more efficient way to contact our office. Many have said that while at work or in other public places, it’s easier to share more details about their health condition since they are sending it via an electronic message and not over the phone.”

Once a physician practice decides to implement Patient Gateway, the Newton-Wellesley EMR team provides the office with the support they need to begin using the technology. This support includes meetings with leadership, software setup, preparing informational materials to send to patients and staff training.

“We have taken the steps to ensure success for our physicians and their patients as this new technology is introduced,” explains Mary. “We are excited about the enhanced communication Patient Gateway provides for our patients and hope this tool will be a great addition to the high-quality care provided by Newton-Wellesley Hospital and its physicians.”

“Patient Gateway has been a convenient and easy way for me to keep track of my appointments and medical information. I can view my Lab results within a few hours of my tests. I also use Patient Gateway to refill my medications. By logging onto my account, I can easily have my prescriptions refilled in minutes. This technology has allowed me to have access to all of my medical information and the convenience of having it all located in one place.”
– Brian Leger, Patient, Waltham Weston Internal Medicine

More InformationPlease contact your physician's office to determine if they are a Patient Gateway site. To login to Patient Gateway, please go to http://www.patientgateway.org.

Geoffrey Burns, MD, FAAFP
Primary Care Physician, Newton-Wellesley Hospital
Dr. Burns is board certified in Family Medicine. He received his medical degree from Boston University and completed his internship and residency at the David Grant Medical Center, Travis Air Force Base Fairfield, California.